Bit holder



April 5, 196.0 .1. s. SHARP BIT HOLDER Filed April 30. 1958 U m B m 6 a 8 lll'l'll llllullll Illl-l L'l I II I III fir rlllllllllllllul llllllllll 'llal Ill l IL 6 5 I I i l ml. lfihnlllJllllllllfllllJllll-IIIQ E\- L7 IN VEN TOR.

JACK 5. SHARP Of /Jaw fmw ATTORNEYS BIT HOLDER {Jack S. Sharp, Carrollton, Ga.

Application April 30, 1958, Serial No. 731,981

The present invention relates generally as indicated to a bit holder and more particularly to a bit holder which is adapted to be mounted, for example, on the inside wall of a utility or like truck, to hold a set of bell hangers, electricians, telephone, or construction workers drilling or auger bits of different diameters and lengths.

Hitherto, it has been the practice to store bits of this nature in tool boxes or in compartments and drawers in the truck body together with other tools, thereby making it difiicult to find the bit of the desired diameter and length, and often the cutting edges and flutes are marred by the bits coming into contact with one another and with other tools in the same box, compartment or drawer.

Accordingly, it is one principal object of this invention to provide a novel form of bit holder which is adapted to be mounted on a vertical wall and which yieldably holds the bits for ready removal and which'protects the cutting lips thereof against damage.

It is another object of this invention to provide a bit holder which provides recesses having spring-actuated members therein to engage the shank ends of the drills and to yieldably press the cutting ends of the drills'against opposed brackets.

It is another object of this invention to provide a bit holder in which the brackets with which the cutting ends of the drills are engaged are independently, longitudinally adjustable to accommodate drills of different lengths.

It is another object of this invention to provide a bit holder in which the longitudinally adjustable brackets have recesses or openings to receive the points of the drills to thus hold the drills against lateral displacement relative to the holder.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention, then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following description and the annexed drawings setting forth in detail a certain illustrative embodiment of the invention, this being indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawing:

Fig. l is a front elevation view, partly in cross-section, showing one embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 2 is a side elevation view as viewed from the righthand side of Fig. 1, said view being partly in vertical cross-section to clearly show the longitudinally adjustable brackets in which the tips of the drills are adapted to be seated and held thereby.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the bit holder herein comprises a back or base member 1 which may include holes 2 adjacent the top and bottom for mounting screws or the like by which said base member may be attached to the inside vertical wall of a utility truck, or the like. It is to be understood that the base member 1 and other ed seesPat 'O 2,93 l ,5 l 6 Patented Apr. 5, 1 960 parts of the holder hereinafter referred to may be made of any material such as metal, plastics, wood, etc.

Secured adjacent to the lower end of the base member 1 is a block 3 which is formed with a series of laterally adjacent, upwardly opening recesses 4 each of which provides a shoulderS. Secured acrossthe top of the block 3 as by screws 6 is a strip 7 formed with a correspondingrseries of openings 8 which are aligned with the respective recesses 4, the openings 8 being smaller in diameter than therecesses 4 so as to provide shoulders 9 that are opposed to the shoulders in the recesses.

In each recess 4 there is a spring-actuated plunger assembly comprising, for example, a plunger 10 having a head or flange 11 at the top thereof which is pressed against the shoulder 9 by means of a compression spring 12. The lower end of each spring 12 bears on a washer 14 which is slidable on the shank of the plunger 10 and which is interposed between the lower end of the spring and the shoulder 5. The lower end of the shank of the plunger 10 may be peened or otherwise formed to keep the spring 12 and the washer 14 from coming oif the plunger 10 thereby facilitating handling and assembly.

Above the block 3 the base member 1 is formed with a series of elongated slots 15 that are in axial alignment with the respective recesses 4. Extending through said slots 15 are the shanks of screws 16 which have their heads fitted in the widened portions 17 of the slots at the back side of said base member. Each screw 16 extends through one leg of an angle bracket 18, the angle bracket 18 being held in any desired longitudinally adjusted position with respect to the aligned recess 4 as by means of a wing nut 19 or the like that is threaded onto the respective screw 16. The horizontal leg of each bracket 18 is formed with a recess or opening 29 to receive the tip of a drilling or auger bit B.

In the present case, the bit holder is shownfor purposes of illustration only as having a base member 1, a block 3, and brackets 18 to accommodate three drilling bits B, but it is to be understood that the base member and block may be formed to accommodate any number of such drills. In any event, the brackets 18 will be mounted for longitudinal adjustment so that the distances from the horizontally extending legs thereof to the top of the strip 7 will he say, about one-half inch or some other distance less than the overall lengths of the respective drills which are to be held in the holder.

When it is desired to place a bit B in the holder the end of the bit stock shank is inserted through the proper opening 8 in the strip 7 with the shank end engaging the top surface of the flange 11 of the plunger 10. The drill 'bit B may then be pressed downwardly to compress the spring 12 to thereby bring the tip of the drill to a position just below the horizontal leg of the corresponding angle bracket 18. The tip of the drill bit B then may be swung laterally until the point thereof registers with the recess or opening 20 in the bracket. The drill bit B is then released whereby the spring 12 is effective to press the tip into the recess 20. Conversely, when it is desired to remove a bit for use the foregoing manipulations are reversed viz, the workman grasps the body or shank of the drill bit B and forces it downwardly to disengage the tip from the bracket recess 20 and he then swings the tip to clear the bracket 18 and lifts the drill out of the opening 8 in the strip 7.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invention may be employed, change being made as regards the details described, provided the features stated in any of the following claims, or the equivalent of such, be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

1. A holder for drilling bits of different lengths comprising a base member forrn ed with a series of elongated parallel slots, a series of brackets secured to said base member for independent longitudinal adjustment along the respective slots, screw means for locking said brackets at desired positions, 'a block adjacent to one end of said P em 'fi flwi h 5 1 4 9f ter l y i i l recesses having intermediate annular shoul ;le rs that are the bits against the respective brackets.

2. The holder of claim 1 wherein each bracket is for wit a p ur o r ce ve t e t ps of the hi therein.

3. The holder of claim 1 wherein each spring-actuated member comprises a flanged plunger, and wherein a compression spring around each plunger bears on the flange of said plunger and on said shoulder in the respective recess.

4. The holder of claim 3 wherein a washer slidable on said plunger is interposed between said shoulder and the adjacent end of said spring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

